Conventions of murder mystery
- 1. CONVENTIONS OF MURDER MYSTERY Joseph Russo
- 2. Murder • A murder is usually one of the main conventions of a Murder Mystery film as it creates the mystery of who commited the murder. A main character is sometimes murdered but a lot of the time a person not related to any of the characters is murdered and the protagonist has to solve the murder. • In the film, Frantic, there are several murders. One of these murders happens at the end of the film when one of the main characters, Michelle, is murdered for no reason.
- 3. Victim • The victim in a murder mystery film is the person who is either murdered of kidnapped. To create tension and suspense, this is sometimes a close friend or family member who is murdered. Typically, there is one victim, but in some Murder Mystery films there is more than one victim who is murdered. • In the film, Frantic, Dr. Walker’s wife is the victim because she gets kidnapped. You could also say Michelle is a victim because she is murdered at the end of the film.
- 4. Detective • A detective is the person in the film who attemps to solve a murder or kidnapping. They often find a lot of clues to help them solve a mystery. • In the film, Dr. Walker acts as the detective to help find his wife who has been kidnapped. He finds a lot of clues to help him and he puts all of the pieces together to find his wife. He also uses witnessess to ask them if they know what has happened to his wife.
- 5. Murderer • The murderer in a Murder Mystery film is the person who murders another character. Typically in a Murder Mystery film, the murderer is unknown until the end of the film. The murderer is normally the main antagonist in the film and the protagonist tries to find him to solve the murder. • In the film there are several murderers. One of these murderers is the person who murders Dede. This is an unknown murderer. One of the main antagonists, who is also involved in the kidnapping of Dr. Walkers wife, murders Michelle at the end of the film by shooting her, so he could also be classed as one of the murderers in the film.
- 6. Clues • Clues are one of the most important conventions of a Murder Mystery film because the crime could not be solved without it. Clues also help the audience get involved with the film because when there is a clue, the crime is getting closer to being solved, so the audience can feel like they are solving the crime as well. • There are many clues in the film and some of the main ones are the souvenir of the Statue Of Liberty, the phone number Dr. Walker finds in a matchbox, the jewellery he finds in the street next to the car and Michelle’s suitcase. These are all clues which lead him to finding his wife.
- 7. Red Herring • The Red Herring in a Murder Mystery film is a false clue that misleads the audience into thinking it is a major clue, and towards the end of the film it is revealed that the clue is not important. • In Frantic, the souvenir of the Statue of Liberty acts as a Red Herring at the start of the film but towards the end it is revealed that it is a very important clue in the film. It misleads the audience into thinking it is not important because it is not involved in the film a lot at the start but towards the middle and the end of the film it becomes important.
- 8. Twist • The twist in a Murder Mystery film is an unexpected turn of events at the end of the film. It is normally something that shocks the audience because it is very unexpected, and to the audience, it seems unlikely to happen. • In the film, Frantic, the twist happens at the end of the film when Dr. Walker throws an object into a river that the antagonists were looking for. This is unexpected because he is expected to get his wife back in return for this object, but instead the object is thrown in the river. Another twist could be when Michelle is murdered because she is one of the main protagonists in the film and it comes as a shock to the audience when she is killed.